Silverstone interior with kids?

[PaulT_M5]

I was supposed to pick up my M5 yesterday, but cutting a long story short, the dealer moved me up the queue by amending an order they already had in the system and have managed to screw up the interior colour . Instead of Sakhir it is Silverstone extended with the black plastic on the back of the front seats.

I have initially rejected the car on the grounds that it isn't what I ordered and, as I have a young son and plan on keeping the car for a few years, do not really think that a Silverstone interior is in any way practical. The sales manager wasn't in yesterday, but is due to call me tomorrow.

However, in the meantime, does anyone have any real world experience of the Silverstone interior with young children? If I accept the car will I be forever having to clean it?

[Wills2]

Not with children specifically, but with me as the big child in the front seat my platinum individual interior just needs looking at to mark it!

It's not the car you ordered I like Silverstone but if you accept the car make sure you some £££ in return, if you have any doubt then simply reject these are too expensive to have regrets.

[RPiM5]

Kids will destroy the interior even if you have black leather. Marks, fingerprints, scratches. I don't even own kids and my back seats rarely gets sat in and I still have several scratches on the Piano Black trim and leather. Silverstone will be harder to keep "looking" clean because it is lighter. At least with Black leather, dye transfer is not an issue. My best suggestion is put put some sort of cloth or cover over the back seat and maybe even the front passenger seat to preserve the leather. In the past I have used a nice large beach towel to cover the back seat if I needed to protect the leather. I have a friend that got a brand new F10 M5 and took his 3 yr old with us on a spirited drive through the mountains. Half way through he had to stop because his kid puked all over the back seat. His M5 had less than 1,000 miles on it too.

[rjberry]

Sorry to hear of your problem.

I've not had Silverstone interior but have had the Cashmere Beige.

What age is your child? Still in the full child seat or just a booster?

I've got two still in the full child seats and one on the booster in between. The two youngest have learned not to climb in, they get lifted into their seats. The eldest has to climb in herself and does cause the occasional mark.

I originally treated my seats to some G-Techniq treatment which keeps the seats easily cleanable. I also use seat protection covers which the car seats and booster seats all sit on. This means most of the marks go on these. Any which get passed them are easy to just wipe off.

Silverstone can be looked after but at the end of the day it's not what you wanted. A replacement car should only take 6-8 weeks to arrive but that's an inconvenience for everyone so I'm sure you can get suitable recompense should you decide to keep what's arrived.

[steveM5-UK]

Ask yourself the question. What colour do you want? If it's still Sakhir as you originally picked, don't opt for 2nd best, it will bug you every time you get in the car.

We make decisions for a reason, don't be pushed to accept what is ultimately a forced compromise. No amount of discount is going to ever solve that for you.

And Sakhir is defo the way to go, but then again I'm biased lol

[PaulT_M5]

My son is almost 7 (next week) and so is on a booster only now. I do have a protector mat, but his feet still seem to manage to touch areas the mat doesn't cover judging by the muddy marks that appear. It's not too bad cleaning these off the black dakota leather I have in my F30, but I suspect Silverstone might not be quite as easy.

I'm swaying towards requesting a replacement to my specification, subject to them still honouring the trade-in value for this month, but will have to wait and see what comes of the call tomorrow.

[rjberry]

Kids have a way of making a mess no matter how much you try to stop them. Even with my whole back seat covered they still seem to find a way

In your position I would hold out for the car you want. Besides, as we all know the Sakhir interior is the best

[Jaragator]

Agree that you should wait for what you want. My wife's suv has light grey leather and it's extremely difficult to keep looking clean with 2 kids (it's a lease so I don't really care that much). I say get what you want so you don't regret settling for what you didn't specifically order

[Ninong]

I have Silverstone interior in an M3 and it shows marks a lot easier than darker colors whether you have children or not. Almost all of my cars have had black interiors and there is definitely a big difference in taking care of a very light interior leather compared to a darker one.

Whenever I had to have a child's carseat in the back of the car, I always used a folded up bath towel underneath. That helped, but they will climb all over the place when they're very young and their shoes can definitely show marks on a light interior. With a darker interior, it's easier to wipe them off.

I don't know about you but I would never accept an extended leather interior if I had ordered full leather and I would almost never accept a color other than the one I ordered unless maybe if it was my second choice color.

[PaulT_M5]

Thanks for all the replies so far.

Apologies, I didn't mean to mislead anyone. My original order was for extended leather in Sakhir, not full leather, so all they've got wrong is the colour.

Full leather doesn't seem to be that common an option over here in the UK (it's £5.5k or approx $8k) and I actually think the black seat backs tone down the amount of red and would also be easier to clean when little feet have been kicking against them.

If I had to have a second choice of interior colour, it would have been black, though my last 2 cars have had black leather, so I wanted to brighten things up a little this time.

[kiwistu]

Hi All

My kids climb all over my car sandy feet and all, you just cant worry about it, I don't let them eat sushi in the car though (even I have limits!)

Re the plastic on the back of the seats - with kids you want this!!!!

I have full leather and after soccer, they are covered in clay (9 year old) - I laughed out loud (I think I have commented on this before) first world problem dirt in the leather on the back on my seats...WTF are we crapping on about.

Love your car, love your kids more, go for it I say! (you guys all lease your cars - I bet they never even look inside when you chuck them the keys at the end of the lease!?)

Cheers
stu

[Mbbrewer]

I've got oyster in my 550i which is pretty light. I've taught my 2 boys who are both 6 and 4 now to respect my car and not eat or drink anything in it. Still looks new now. I wouldn't sweat it.

[sdshah]

Get sakhir and make ur dealership compensate you. I would take the silverstone if they give you a beautiful discount.

I had a e60 m5 interlagos/silverstone II. Was an awesome Combo but had to clean it hard weekly.

[SteveC]

I just explained to my young daughter that I liked to keep my car nice and shiny and showed her how she could help. She always went out of her way to cooperate....no pressure from me, just praise on what a good job she was doing looking after my car.
If you don't teach kids to respect your stuff, how will they know?

[sdshah]

Originally Posted by SteveC

I just explained to my young daughter that I liked to keep my car nice and shiny and showed her how she could help. She always went out of her way to cooperate....no pressure from me, just praise on what a good job she was doing looking after my car.
If you don't teach kids to respect your stuff, how will they know?

I think at the end of the day it still come down to the fact the leather gets dirty with adults , sweat, jeans, and skin,

Kids being respectful or not doesn't really matter I think. It just depends how much time you have to clean it.

[MCarsFan]

Probably too light to be safe with kids but then again..I think you must get what you initially wanted. If you do accept.. Insist that they scotch guard the interior and provide a seat protector for the back seat..

[POBA]

Stick with what you ordered initially. No need to second guess yourself down the road. Regardless, it is a beautiful car and you will enjoy it. Good luck

[mainly]

i cant believe anyone even transports kids in a car like this? especially with full leather??

but dont get light colored interior, its absolutely horrible to keep clean, even without kids!!!

if i had kids, (and i dont have any intention of every having any), but if i did, i would just buy a $20k piece of crap to transport them around, to and from their various activites, etc. but not in an M5...

your special car is for you. not for letting your kids destroy it.

unless of course your a millionaire and dont care at all about resale value. then different story obviously.

[ozbmwnut]

my car has silverstone leather, which i love, BUT i have only had it 3 months, and already i can see the drivers seat is showing signs of dirt and grime. my kids are grown up, and 99% of the time i am the only person in the car.
it will certainly be a labour of love to keep it looking clean and as new..

[neiluk]

I've had light leather in my last 5 cars including Silverstone in my M5 and, whilst not used as daily transport for kids, they have served as 'family' cars which we frequently travel long distances in. I've never had any serious problems keeping them clean - its the drivers seat which always suffers. I have friends and relatives whose cars are trashed by kids and the single obvious difference is that they allow them to eat and drink in the car routinely; it may sound harsh but food and drinks are banished from my car with the exception of water. If they were coming in from a muddy walk I must admit I'd probably have some sort of mild panic attack and would probably be trying to take the shoes off the little ones. Good interior fabric and leather sealants will also help keep things clean - my car is having the Gtechniq works in a few weeks time. This may sound a little OCD but I do believe its possible to keep a clean, light interior whilst also teaching the kids to have some common sense and respect. Due to where I live, the outside of my car is usually absolutely filthy, but I absolutely can't stand a grubby / untidy interior.

[johntomferg]

I have SS interior with extended leather. Rarely haul kids. But even shoe scuffs against the lower door sections show (until cleaned appropriately). Definitely don't need to stress your life out with kids against a white interior.

But, like others have said, it is more important that you get what you ordered/wanted.

[Bönz]

As for as color vs. cost vs. waiting again - that's up to you. I do agree with the thinking that get what you want, or you may be disappointed in the long run.

As far as cleaning, well ALL colors get dirty just the same. The lighter colors just show it more. So do you care about cleanliness or appearance?